Stories

A South Korean in Slovenia

Hyun Chang is a South Korean student who has decided to spend some time in Europe last year (2017), with the purpose of studying and meeting a different culture through the exchange. Although Slovenia wasn’t his first choice, he says he absolutely loved living there! To find out why, read the interview we had with Hyun last week.

Hyun is part of a small community of South Koreans that decided to visit Slovenia. The country wasn’t very famous in South Korea in the past few years, however, after the romantic South Korean drama "Dear My Friends”, Slovenia came up on the radar. Just to satisfy your curiosity, the three chosen locations for filming were Bled, Ljubljana and Piran.

It doesn’t matter the countries size, we know reasons for connecting between Slovenia and South Korea will always exist, being now the Winter Olympic Games 2018 or simply the amusement of cultural exchange.

Enjoy the conversation we had with Hyun and we welcome you to visit Slovenia.

Why have you chosen Slovenia as your destination? How long have you stayed there? Tell us a bit about your story. Where and what are you studying?

Frankly, I didn't know Slovenia exactly, and I was not interested in Slovenia. I had 3 options to choose from - Poland, Slovenia and Britain. The other countries were already full, so I had to choose Slovenia. Slovenia for most South Korean people was largely unknown, prior to my moving there. I think that’s why there were very little or none relations between Slovenia and South Korea. But, after seeing Slovenia in the background of a Korean TV drama, many Koreans started showing interest for Slovenia.

By the way, after applying to a university in Slovenia, I found information about Slovenia, and I knew that Slovenia is a fairy-tale country. Personally, I prefer eco-friendly environment than a big city, so studying in Slovenia exceeded my expectations and I was more than satisfied. I have lived and studied in Slovenia for 1 year. I almost forgot to tell, I studied business and economics.

Is Slovenia a popular country among South Korean travellers?

Yes, after the two TV Drama was filmed in Slovenia, the country became one of the popular countries for Koreans, especially Bled, which is stated as the most beloved town for Koreans.

What did you like the most about Slovenia?

I like everything in Slovenia a lot, firstly being the peace and calm. Contrary to the other countries, Slovenia is so clean and it is not crowded.

Have you tried any Slovenian traditional dish? How did like it?

Yes, I did, I remembered that it was sausage, from the store was in the centre of Ljubljana. My Slovenian friend took me there. As I recall, to my surprise, the sausage wasn’t like anything I have tried before. I also had Slovenian traditional food in one of the school events. But to be honest, I don't know what exactly is the traditional food of Slovenia.

Can you tell us what caught your attention from the Slovenian culture?

The party culture, most of European really like dancing, I think. The Christmas event was really good!

Is it easy to travel in Europe? What about the public transport, does it work well - can you compare with South Korea?

It was quite good, except once when I waited for the bus for 12 hours because of border traffic...The flights were also very cheap and a toilet in the bus is really convenient for long drives. I enjoyed taking long drives with the bus, because you know, we cannot travel to China or the other Asian countries by land because of North Korea.

If you were giving some advice to a South Korean friend that wanted to visit Slovenia, what would it be? What shouldn’t they miss?

Just feel the environment, walk and see Slovenia. Even though they don't have fancy buildings and the culture is very different from ours, I can assure you will be satisfied with the country. You just need to feel the country.